According to his law, I should drop him like a bad fucking habit and move on with my life. I searched for empathy, but I could only muster mild concern and a massive dose of irritation that he’d been irresponsible enough to possibly get caught. Now I was at risk of being ensnared in his affairs when I was firmly committed to my own. The last thing I wanted to do was inherit his problems, or his hedge fund.
“I don’t want to get involved in this,” I finally said.
“The things that went down with the Youth Arts Initiative are a separate matter. The money in the fund is clean. You have my word. I can get back on track after all this, but not without your help. Just meet with me. I can lay it all out for you, and you can see what’s at stake.”
I hesitated. He was in deep shit, and as much as I disagreed with his ethics, he was my father and I could at least hear him out—even if I wasn’t willing to stick my neck out to protect his money. Our money, considering I was his only heir and he’d rather burn every dollar than give a penny more to my mother.
“I’m in the middle of a major renovation. I don’t have a lot of time right now.”
“I’ll swing by the site this week. Won’t take long.”
I didn’t want him anywhere near my project. “I’d rather you didn’t. Let’s meet for lunch. I’ll text you when and where.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
The hint of vulnerability in his voice scared me more than anything. Desperation where there’d been only righteous, fearless dedication to his work.
I hung up and stared at the skyline through my window. Another million-dollar view. I had plenty, and my father was right. I’d never known a life without the security of wealth—wealth that he’d amassed by any cutthroat means possible, it would seem. I’d taken my share and played with it in my real estate ventures. But I’d never take his path—moving money between accounts and countries and investments. Options and futures and formulas that only made sense to money-chasers like my father.
And when I finally decided to sit down with him, that’s exactly what he was going to try to sell me. A life I’d never wanted.
I glanced at my watch and moved for the door. I was late, pissed off, and all I wanted was to take those frustrations out on the beautiful brat that was Olivia Bridge.
Chapter Two
WILL
The maître d’ led me to a private table for two in the back of Artu, the upscale restaurant I’d chosen for our dinner tonight. Olivia leaned back in her chair, staring at the brightly lit screen of her phone. Her legs were crossed at the knee under a black-and-white lace pencil skirt that hugged her hips and thighs. Her simple black top was tasteful and revealing at once. I guessed that every piece of her outfit tonight had been carefully chosen to appear professional, except those five-inch black heels that I wanted on either side of my ears.
As I approached, her smile was tight and her shoulders stiffened. “You came. And to think you were worried about me standing you up.”
She was upset. I held my tongue a moment because that little temper of hers was proving to be a weakness for me. I couldn’t wait to fuck the haughty right out of her. Blood flowed south when I thought about the lovely line of her body bending for me, arching under a screaming orgasm as I pounded my way toward my own.
I sat down across from her and exhaled air meant for words I couldn’t say just yet. She wasn’t a bimbo at a bar. She was highly educated, armed with high standards and a sharp tongue. I had to deal with those circumstances delicately to get what I wanted, not to mention mitigate any potential fallout with her brothers after she heard my proposition.
“I had to take an important call.” I draped my napkin over my lap. “Have you been here before?”
“A couple times,” she said flatly. She did her best to ignore me by studying the menu.
After a moment, the waiter came and took our orders. When he disappeared, the silence between us felt electric with possibilities. I raked her in, making up for the lost time.
“You look lovely, Olivia.”
She tucked a sleek strand of dark-brown hair behind her ear. She was fidgety, avoiding my eyes, silently telling me that she wasn’t immune to my blatant appraisal of her. “So you wanted to discuss the plans?”
“I’d like to get to know you first,” I murmured.
She took a deep breath and folded her hands together in front of her. “You know my brothers well enough. Why are you suddenly so interested in me?”
“When I see something I want, I don’t waste time going after it. I’m a little impulsive that way.”
“And what exactly do you want from me?”
I exhaled softly. I wanted so many things…so many delicious and depraved things. I leaned forward and took her hand gently, bringing it across the table toward me. Her lips parted and her chest moved under a shaky breath. Soft olive skin slid like silk under my touch. Circling her wrist, I let the cool metal of her bracelet rest in my palm. A small charm hung from it. A crown with diamonds decorating the tips.
“This is pretty.”
“It was from my parents. A graduation gift.”
My wheels began turning. I already knew so much about Olivia, the game almost wasn’t fair. Still, I couldn’t help myself.
“Vassar?”
“Smith.”
I lifted my eyebrows in surprise. “Top tier, all girls. Interesting. Must be where you got that sharp tongue.”
She laughed and pulled her hand back. “Four years without a bunch of elite chauvinists marching all over my words were refreshing, for sure.”
“Women’s studies?”
“Studio art. How about you? Oh, let me guess…” She pursed her lips like she was calculating. “Brown.” Her eyes lit up as she said it.
I was silent, momentarily unwilling to admit she was right and in disbelief that she seemed to be enjoying a game I had invented a long time ago for my own smug entertainment.
“Why Brown?”
“Ivy league, because your family could obviously afford it. But trendy and progressive, because you don’t really fit the mold.”
“Is that so?”
“I don’t know a lot of guys with your resources who are getting dirty on construction sites.”
I laughed out loud. “Ah, right. Good thing Tom introduced us properly. No way I was getting a date with you until you could establish my tax bracket.”
She rolled her eyes, and I couldn’t hide the grin splitting my face. Getting under a girl’s skin shouldn’t be this much fun.
“I’d guess what your father does, but I obviously already know.”
“Same,” she said with a tight smile.
Her quick reply knocked the wind out of me a little. My first instinct was always to defend my father to outsiders, but what he’d done was reprehensible. Didn’t change the fact that we were flesh and blood, though.
“There it is. I was waiting for that.”
A flash of remorse flickered in her cool blue eyes, like she wanted to apologize but had too much pride. I didn’t need her apologies or her sympathy.
Under normal circumstances, I might be concerned about our family’s connection. Our fathers had both spent time on Wall Street and no doubt shared several business connections. But I cared less about her parents learning of the proposition I was about to make than how my father’s stained reputation could become an impediment to getting her under me.
I sipped my wine and watched her do the same, enjoying the way her full lips met the delicate rim of the glass. Then her tongue swiping over her lips.
“You’re single,” I said. She’d fucking better be.
“At the moment.”
“That’s good news for me, but why?”
She lifted an eyebrow.
“Beautiful, the best education money can buy, wealthy family. You should be married off by now. Or am I missing something?”
She looked thoughtfully at her wineglass, twirling it by the base. “Not that it’s any of your business, b
ut I only moved to the city a year ago, and I’m still getting settled. Getting ‘married off’ isn’t exactly a priority for me. Right now, the only thing I care about is helping Cameron and Darren get through this expansion. I’ve devoted myself to the project, and now you’re messing it up.”
I drummed my fingers on the tablecloth. “Is this about the wall?”
“This is about the wall and every other adjustment you plan to make that compromises our vision.”
“What if I said you could have creative control on the renovation from here forward?”
She blinked. “I thought you were on a budget.”
I shrugged and pursed my lips. “Convince me not to be.”
She swallowed, a new light in her eyes. “Well, there are certain aesthetics that will set us apart from everyone else—”
“Convince me tonight. At my place.”
She shook her head slightly. “What are you saying?”
“I think you know exactly what I’m saying. I’d like to get to know you better. Quite a bit better, in fact.”
She stared silently, her soft lips parted. “You obviously don’t know anything about me if you expect me to sleep with you after a little dinner and wine.”
“I may know you better than you know yourself.”
She let out a short laugh. “I highly doubt it.”
I riled at the challenge, and after her little comment about my dad, I felt compelled to set her straight.
“You reek of privilege, Olivia. You pretend to be independent, but you still use your parents’ credit cards. Nothing drives you more than social expectation and a looming fear of failure. You’re naturally stunning, but that look of effortless beauty probably costs your parents a fortune. You’re high maintenance. From your designer hair cut down to your manicured little toes. I’d be willing to bet you hit the spa once a month to wax your pretty little cunt too, not because you’re getting laid but because being unkempt goes against your debutante religion.”
“Fuck you,” she snapped.
The murmur of conversation around us died down for a moment, but I didn’t bother checking to see which of our table neighbors we were offending. Instead, I exhaled a frustrated groan because I’d hit a nerve. And because now I couldn’t think about anything except her smooth pussy in my mouth.
“I’d love to, princess. When’s the last time someone took you to bed and fucked you properly?”
I half expected her to storm out on me. I’d offended her in multiple ways, and we hadn’t even hit the main course. But the determination in her eyes told another story. That spark of fire spoke of a willingness to hold her ground, or more, to fight back and win.
Her cheeks were pink, and her hand trembled when she went for her wineglass again. If not for her age, I’d have wondered if she was a virgin. Either way, I guessed she was way overdue in the intimacy department.
She swallowed and set her glass down hard. “You’re a pig.”
I smiled. On to the next round.
“I do enjoy the filthy arts. I think you might, too. What do you say, Olivia? We can enjoy a little rendezvous here and there, and in return, I’ll let you spend my cash like Monopoly money on the renovation. Keep your brothers happy. Keep me happy. And then I’ll keep you happy.”
She lifted her chin. “You can’t buy me.”
“I’m well aware of that. But this isn’t about the money. It’s about you getting what you want. And me getting what I want.”
She crossed her arms tightly but didn’t say anything more. Poor little rich girl betraying her sensibilities. If the attraction was real, she could seduce herself with the prospect, her sensibilities be damned.
I leaned in and gazed intently at her. “Let me be clear, Olivia. I’m not a guy you date, and I’m nowhere near husband material. I’m the one you mess around with until the right guy comes along—one your parents will approve of. But I’m rich and well connected enough for you to be seen with, and you’ll find out soon that when it comes to delivering orgasms, I’m rather dedicated to my craft. Once you say yes to me, you’ll be too busy coming to worry about your pride.”
Her cheeks flushed a deeper pink, setting off the dazzling blue of her eyes. “You’re cocky, too. You forgot that.”
I smirked, and the waiter took that opportune moment to bring our meals. She lifted her knife and fork and speared them into her steak without a word. I dismantled my sea bass with a little less vigor, occasionally glancing up at her, trying to read her. I wanted to ask her more about herself, but I also enjoyed the way my proposition and her consideration of it hung between us. A little awkward, but heavy and sexual too.
I took my last bite and dropped my napkin on the table. The food was delicious and the company was fine, but I wasn’t nearly satisfied. I wanted Olivia Bridge naked, under me.
“You’re considering my offer. Tell me what’s holding you back. What are you thinking?”
Her cool gaze flickered to mine. “Are you asking for an answer or a confession? My thoughts are none of your business.”
I shrugged slightly. “I’m curious.”
“So am I.”
OLIVIA
“I’d love nothing more than to indulge that curiosity, Olivia.” Will’s words were low, confident, and laced with dark promises.
I would have paid to disintegrate into the floor without another word. I was being reckless. Brazen. Inappropriate. No more inappropriate than Will, but now I was inching my way to his level. I was letting him get into my head.
My negotiation skills might have been lacking, but I wasn’t naïve. When a man invited a woman to dinner—a confident, gorgeous, and decidedly single man like Will Donovan—chances were high that he factored in the possibility of sex. He knew it, and I knew it. And now I’d basically shown him all my cards.
Going into this dinner, I’d had no intentions of sleeping with Will. That didn’t keep the delicious fantasy from poking its way into my thoughts, however. I was curious. Physically, I was attracted to him, but I was also drawn to his confidence and that edge that made him different from other prospects. I wanted to peel him back the way he was intent on peeling me back. But I had a feeling he was a lot better at it and that I was woefully out of my depth.
The waiter cleared our plates and brought dessert menus. I tried to ignore Will and the silent push and pull that seemed to exist between us even when no words were being spoken. I studied the menu, attempting to buy myself time to get my head together.
The truth was I hadn’t been with anyone since I’d left my father’s private investment firm nearly a year ago, and that experience had been less than pleasant. After enough wine to dull my reservations, I’d let my father’s newly appointed vice president at the firm take me to bed. The sex had been quick and passionless, but he was moving up fast in the company, so he was the one my parents were relentlessly pushing me toward. I wasn’t sure, ultimately, if I’d given in for him or for them.
The next day, I’d called Cameron and made the decision to leave my job there and move to the city.
Now I was sitting across from a man who sizzled with sex appeal and was all but guaranteeing physical pleasure. Plus, no strings beyond the added bonus of getting to have a voice in the renovation of my family’s next investment? He was challenging my sense of propriety, but he was also painting a picture that ran in stark contrast to anything I’d experienced.
After a few minutes, I finally looked up to meet Will’s imploring gaze. “Are we getting dessert?”
“We can. Unless you’ve decided to come home with me.”
“I’ll have the cheesecake,” I said quickly, dropping the menu between us.
He licked his bottom lip with a cocky smile. “Sounds delicious.”
Dessert came and went, but I was too preoccupied with Will’s dangerous energy and his proposal to savor much of anything. We left the restaurant, and the car that had collected me earlier idled by the curb. Will’s hand rested lightly on my lower back. That small touc
h held the promise of so many more, heightening the physical ache that had been creeping up on me since we’d met. The ache made me want to give Will an answer that seemed unthinkable.
I moved quickly toward the car, needing to create space between us. But before I could slip away, he caught my wrist and spun me to face him. With a soft push against the car, Will had our bodies nearly touching.
“Will—” I gasped.
His heated gaze lowered to my lips. “If you won’t give me an answer tonight, how about a kiss?”
“No.” My voice was soft and uncertain.
“Dare I ask why?” He leaned in but didn’t make contact. His breath puffed softly against my cheek. His cool and woodsy scent drifted over me, making an indelible imprint on my senses.
The manageable measure of desire that had burned through my veins over dinner was spiking. A potent heat licked over my skin and settled between my legs. I swallowed hard, trying to find my strength. “Because if I kiss you, I may as well give you my answer now.”
“I fail to see the problem,” he murmured.
I placed a firm hand on his chest. “I think before I act, and you aren’t giving me time to think.”
He moved back slowly. Tension lined his shoulders and crept up to his jaw, as if he were restraining himself. “Then think. But I want an answer by tomorrow.”
“You’ll have an answer when I give you one.”
He tapped his watch twice. “Clock is ticking. Need to close up that wall for the next inspection.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could throw any more sass at him, he guided me into the car and tapped the roof to signal the driver to go.
As Will’s driver put the vehicle into motion, I relaxed against the cool leather and closed my eyes. I should have felt relief, but instead I was unsettled, stirred up with more emotions than I knew what to do with. All this and he’d barely touched me.
The prospect of letting him get any closer was frightening, and all too tempting.
“So where’d you go last night?”
Over the Edge: The Bridge Series: Book Three Page 2